Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Your voices have been heard

At around 11:00 PM PT tonight, I got my 60 seconds in front of the Berkeley City Council to deliver our petition. Many eloquent voices spoke before me, including the mother on a Navy SEAL killed in Iraq who shared the story of her son's dedication to individual freedom and the rule of law. It was a deeply profound honor to stand alongside her and give my testimony.

As promised, I focused on the Constitutional question, reminding the Council that Congress has the specifically enumerated right to raise an army, while in contrast, the City has no right to stand against that mission. I said that the Council was doing injustice to their own oath of office and has put themselves at odds with the entire nation. It's been a very long day and I'm sure one could tell I was running on autopilot, but I think I got our essential message out.

That said, I am in no way convinced that this Council is going to retract its insult to our Constitution and our Marines. I got the sense that they are deeply proud of their stance, even as many of their own constituents condemn them for it. I am loath to say it, but I think that this battle has only just begun.

Tomorrow I will visit the Marine recruiting station to survey the situation there. If I find that protesters are permitted to physically barricade the office with no response from local law enforcement, we will have to search for a federal solution to this escalating problem.